End of the Line

Anchor Bay

R4 DVD

End of the Line is an extremely nerve wracking horror film which offers a very different take on the apocalypse using an aberrant Christian sect as its central focus.

The film opens as Karen, who works as a nurse in a psychiatric ward finds more and more of her patients obsessed with demons. It is a full moon and a lunar eclipse and new patients are flooding in raving and screaming. She receives devastating news that one of her patients has committed suicide by throwing herself under a train; she looks and reflects on the demon infested art that Vivienne has left behind. She leaves work exhausted and emotionally drained.

As she boards the train home things get quickly get out of control. The train is filled with uniformed members of the Church of Hope who sit and sing together. Suddenly they all receive a beeper message and decide to get about the Lord’s work to save as many people as possible. However, their method of Salvation is via a crucifix shaped dagger as they believe that only through death can people avoid the demonic plague which will begin with the start of Armageddon. As they slaughter with abandon and heavenly praise they send a shiver up your shine as they reflect so many extreme trends in modern religion.

Karen and a small group escape the train and now must try and make it out of the subway. It sounds like such a simple plot, doesn’t it ? Well in the right hands the simplest plot and a moderate budget can make a great film and this one is truly creepy. The dark tunnels of the subway filled with shadows, half light and insane Christians armed with crucifix knives provide a constant suspenseful experience. The character development is impressive with a group of survivors you really like, unusual in modern horror. The true believers are utterly terrifying, from their larger than life preacher who appears on a TV screen demanding the world be cleansed to the lovely old lady who supervises the killing. She is epitome of what seems to be a nice old Church woman yet here she is demanding blood and death in an attempt to save the world.

There are many powerful scenes in this film and it could be said that it is clearly critical of Christianity in its various forms. The way in which a young girl is killed because she has been “sullied” by sex and now must be shunned is a powerful reflection of Christian Puritanism and the tormented Church lieutenant who wishes to rape and have a good time before sending people to paradise is a very disturbing character to say the least.

There are so many different resonances in this film from David Koresh to the Aum Cult, when finally they have “saved” (read: killed) enough people they feed each other a suicide pill in true Jim Jones fashion. Yet as the film end a new evil seems to arrive, are they demons or is Karen going into shock ? We are left wondering....

The violence in End of the Line is well done but not overemphasized, sure there is lots of blood and some solid knife, axe and hammer action but it is used as part of the story not for its own sake, but do be ready for lots of great shocks. The scene when the husband and wife are killed and her baby dragged out and left beside them is certainly harrowing.

This is a different sort of horror film with an excellent plot, solid character acting and a very disturbing premise. It kept me on the edge of my seat for the whole time and I will certainly check my back next time I am in a subway !

This review will appear in Volume 2:1 (2009) of the digital and print edition of Synergy Magazine.

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